Sous Vide Salmon Recipe (2024)

Sous Vide Salmon Cooking Temperatures
TextureTemperature
Like firm sashimi105°F (41°C)
Soft and buttery110°F (43°C)
Translucent and starting to flake115°F (46°C)
Very moist, tender, and flaky120°F (49°C)
Firm, moist, and flaky130°F (54°C)

I find that fish can turn watery and mushy if left in the water bath for too long at low temperatures, and dry and chalky when left too long at above 125°F (52°C) or so. For thinner fillets, half an hour to 45 minutes is plenty; for extra-thick fillets, 45 minutes to an hour is all you need.

Note that salmon isn't great cooked at temperatures above the pasteurization point (130°F/54°C), so, for safety purposes, I strongly recommend against letting more than three hours pass between the time you start cooking and the time you serve (unless you chill immediately after cooking).

What Kind of Salmon Should I Buy?

Whatever is freshest and fits your budget! Whether you use wild king, sockeye, coho, or any variety in between, the best salmon is always the freshest salmon. Look for salmon with firm flesh that is glistening and doesn't show any indentations from fingerprints or marks of mishandling. Fresh fish should hold its shape after being touched.

When buying salmon, I prefer to buy larger cuts and divide them into individual portions myself so that I get exactly what I want, rather than letting the fishmonger do it for me.

How Do I Portion My Salmon?

When you're portioning a large piece of salmon, the first step is removing the pin bones. Gently run your fingers across the surface of the fish, and, unless the fishmonger or you have already removed them, you'll find a ridge of thin, flexible bones protruding from the flesh.

Sous Vide Salmon Recipe (1)

Use a good pair of needle-nose pliers, or, if you have them, somesturdy fish tweezersto pull the bones out. Grasp the tips of the bones, then pull them out by pulling along their length to minimize damage to the surrounding flesh. Make sure you also get any bones that are protruding from the cut faces along the sides of the slice.

Sous Vide Salmon Recipe (2)

Salmon is often portioned by cutting crosswise across the entire fish, from back to belly. I find that with a larger king salmon, this creates awkwardly large or skinny portions. I much prefer to first split the fillet down the center along the natural division between the upper half and the belly. Using a sharp knife and steady, long strokes, I slice through the salmon, making sure to cut through the skin as well.

Sous Vide Salmon Recipe (3)

Next, I divide each of those halves into even five- to six-ounce portions. (You can, of course, make the portions bigger if you prefer.) The resulting pieces are closer to square in shape than the long, skinny rectangles you'd get by portioning without splitting.

Should I Brine?

Many recipes for sous vide salmon recommend soaking the fish in a saltwater brine before cooking in order to season it more deeply and to give it a denser, firmer texture. I tried cooking a few pieces of salmon side by side: one plain, one soaked in a liquid salt-and-sugar brine, one soaked in a plain salt brine, one rubbed (dry-brined) with salt and sugar, and one rubbed with salt alone. For the brined and dry-brined salmon, I tested various brining times, ranging from 15 minutes up to overnight. I cooked each sample of salmon sous vide at two different temperatures—115°F (46°C) and 130°F (54°C)—for 30 minutes, then tasted them.

The difference is quite striking, with both the salmon that was water-brined and the dry-brined salmon coming out with a firmer, more pleasant flesh. Without any brine, salmon cooked at lower temperatures can taste mushy and watery; at higher temperatures, it will taste dry and chalky. With brine, salmon at low temperatures has a smooth, buttery texture, and at higher temperatures, it retains more moisture.

I found sugar in the brine to be distracting; however, if you like the added sweetness, there's no harm in it. I prefer dry-brining to water-brining for the sake of convenience: All you have to do is salt your salmon, seal it in a bag, then let it rest before cooking. Half an hour seems to be the magic number—you get a strong brining effect, but still keep things moving along in time for dinner.

Should I Add Fat?

When cooking things like steak or chicken, I typically don't add extra fat to the bag—all it does is dilute flavor by removing fat-soluble flavor compounds. With salmon, on the other hand, some sort of fat is essential if you're cooking more than one piece in a single bag. Salmon proteins will bind together when heated while in contact, which means that two adjacent pieces of fish within the same bag can end up fusing into one, tearing and flaking when you subsequently try to separate them before serving. Fat will coat the fish and help prevent this problem.

Sous Vide Salmon Recipe (4)

With delicate fish, I also generally like adding a few aromatics to help nudge the flavor along. Most often, I reach for a few fresh thyme sprigs. Adding fat to the bag can help the flavor from these aromatics spread around the salmon more easily.

Skin On or Skin Off?

Sous vide salmon skin can be quite delicious if you sear it until crisp after cooking—think of it as salmon cracklings. But if you prefer your salmon skinless for any reason (say, if you're going to serve it simply poached, without searing), there's a much easier way to get rid of that skin than trying to cut it off before cooking: Just wait until after you've cooked it sous vide. The cooking process weakens the bond between skin and meat, making it very easy to peel it off gently with your fingers.

Once the skin is removed, you can also very carefully flake off the dark brown flesh underneath if you'd like. There's no harm in eating it, but some people don't like the way it looks.

Do I Need a Vacuum Sealer?

You don't need a vacuum sealer for sous vide salmon! Because of the short cooking time and low temperature, a regular old zipper-lock bag will work fine. To remove air from a zipper-lock bag without a vacuum sealer, usethe water displacement method. It's fast, efficient, and tailor-made for situations like this.

To do it, simply place your food in a plastic bag, and seal the bag almost all the way, leaving about an inch open. Slowly lower the bag into a tub of water, holding the opened end above the water level. As the bag is lowered, the water pressure should force air out of the bag. Just before it fully submerges, seal the bag completely, and you're ready to cook.

How Should I Serve It?

Depends on how you like it!

Option 1: Sear It

If you're serving it straight away for dinner, and you enjoy crispy skin, I would suggest searing the salmon skin side down in hot fat (vegetable oil orclarified butterworks well) in a skillet. For fully rendered and crisp skin, you do need to leave it in there for a few moments—long enough that you'll start to see some white coagulated proteins around the seared edges of the salmon. This, unfortunately, cannot be helped unless you decide to remove the skin completely and cook it separately for serving. (To do this, peel off the skin, then sear it in a pan while holding it flat with a spatula, or a second pan.)

Be very delicate when searing sous vide salmon, as it can fall apart easily. A thin, flexible fish spatula will help with this job.

Option 2: Chill It

Sous vide salmon is great served cold. When it's cooked to 105°F (41°) and then chilled, you can slice it and serve it like sashimi, though it will have a unique texture all its own. After cooking it at higher temperatures, you can flake the chilled salmon and serve it in salads, in sandwiches, stirred into pasta, or on top of rice bowls. It's a great way to use up leftovers.

Option 3: Just Serve It

The last option is to skip any post–sous vide treatment and just serve it as is, perhaps coating it with a bit of extra-virgin olive oil or with a flavorful vinaigrette or sauce. Sous vide salmon has an incredibly moist, tender texture that I find lovely even without crisp skin or browning to contrast it.

Tips for Sous Vide Salmon

Adding Aromatics

When you place the salmon portions in a single layer inside one or more zipper-lock bags, add a couple of teaspoons of olive oil per fillet to each bag, turning the salmon and using your hands to make sure that it's coated on all sides in order to prevent sticking. From there, feel free to add some gentle aromatics, like fresh herbs such as thyme, parsley, or dill; thinly sliced shallots; or grated citrus zest. However, do not add large chunks of food, which can damage the shape of the fish, or acidic ingredients, which damage the texture.

Let Chill

In order to firm up the flesh, let the bagged salmon rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before cooking. If you'd like, you can leave it in the refrigerator for up to overnight.

Blot Dry Before Searing

To make the salmon easier to sear, you'll want to get it as dry as possible. Carefully remove the salmon from the bag using your hands or a fish spatula, keeping it supported at all times to prevent it from breaking. Place it on a double layer of paper towels, then use another paper towel to gently blot the surface dry.

When searing, place the fish in a hot pan, skin-side down, and make sure to gently press on it with a fish spatula so that the skin makes good contact with the pan. Let it sear until the skin is browned and crisp, about a minute and a half. Flip the salmon, briefly kiss the second side with the pan to give it a touch of color, then remove the salmon and serve.

Perfectly moist and tender dinner is ready.

This guide was produced for Serious Eats as part of ourpartnership with Anova, the makers of theAnova Precision Cooker.

August 2016

Recipe Details

Sous Vide Salmon Recipe

Prep10 mins

Cook50 mins

Active15 mins

Resting Time30 mins

Total90 mins

Serves4 servings

Ingredients

  • 4 salmon fillets (5 to 6 ounces; 140 to 170g each)

  • Kosher salt

  • 2 tablespoons (30ml) extra-virgin olive oil

  • Aromatics such as fresh thyme, dill, parsley, thinly sliced shallots, and/or citrus zest (optional)

  • 2 teaspoons (10ml) vegetable oil, if serving seared

Directions

  1. Season salmon generously with salt on all sides.

    Sous Vide Salmon Recipe (5)

  2. Place salmon in a single layer in a gallon-size zipper-lock bag, or in batches in quart-size bags. Add olive oil to bag or divide it between the smaller bags. Add aromatics to bags, if using. Close bags, place in refrigerator, and let salmon rest for at least 30 minutes or up to overnight.

    Sous Vide Salmon Recipe (6)

  3. Using an immersion circulator, preheat a water bath according to the chart above and in notes section. Remove the air from the zipper-lock bags using the water displacement method: Seal bag almost all the way, leaving about an inch open. Slowly lower bag into water bath, holding the opened end above the water level. As bag is lowered, the water pressure should force air out of it. Just before it is totally submerged, seal bag completely. Use a rack, or clip bag to the side of cooking vessel using a binder clip, to prevent it from moving excessively. Cook 30 to 45 minutes for fillets 1 inch thick or less, or 45 minutes to an hour for fillets between 1 and 2 inches.

    Sous Vide Salmon Recipe (7)

  4. Carefully remove salmon from bags (it will be very delicate) and transfer to a double layer of paper towels. Discard aromatics and gently blot top of salmon with more paper towels.

    Sous Vide Salmon Recipe (8)

  5. To Serve Immediately: Carefully peel away skin and discard. Serve salmon immediately with the freshly skinned side down for better presentation.

    Sous Vide Salmon Recipe (9)

  6. To Serve Cold: Transfer salmon to refrigerator uncovered and allow it to chill completely. Store in a sealed container for up to a few days and serve cold in sandwiches or salads, stirred into pasta, or on top of rice bowls.

    Sous Vide Salmon Recipe (10)

  7. To Sear: Heat vegetable oil in a cast iron, carbon steel, or nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Carefully add salmon skin-side down and cook, pressing gently on fillets with the back of a flexible fish spatula to help maintain pan contact, until skin is browned and crisp, 1 to 1 1/2 minutes. Carefully flip and cook for an additional 15 seconds. Transfer to paper towels to blot off excess oil, then serve immediately.

    Sous Vide Salmon Recipe (11)

Special Equipment

Sous vide immersion circulator; fish spatula; cast iron, carbon steel, or nonstick skillet

Notes

Sous Vide Salmon Cooking Temperatures
TextureTemperature
Like firm sashimi105°F (41°C)
Soft and buttery110°F (43°C)
Translucent and starting to flake115°F (46°C)
Very moist, tender, and flaky120°F (49°C)
Firm, moist, and flaky130°F (54°C)
  • Sous Vide Seafood
  • Dairy-free Mains
  • Gluten-free Mains
  • Salmon
  • Seafood Mains
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
325Calories
22g Fat
0g Carbs
29g Protein

×

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories325
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 22g29%
Saturated Fat 5g24%
Cholesterol 78mg26%
Sodium 398mg17%
Total Carbohydrate 0g0%
Dietary Fiber 0g0%
Total Sugars 0g
Protein 29g
Vitamin C 6mg32%
Calcium 15mg1%
Iron 1mg3%
Potassium 518mg11%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

Sous Vide Salmon Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How long should you sous vide salmon? ›

I find that fish can turn watery and mushy if left in the water bath for too long at low temperatures, and dry and chalky when left too long at above 125°F (52°C) or so. For thinner fillets, half an hour to 45 minutes is plenty; for extra-thick fillets, 45 minutes to an hour is all you need.

How do you know when salmon is cooked enough? ›

Internal temperature: Use an instant-read meat thermometer; the salmon should register 145°F (63°C) at its thickest part. Flakiness: When gently pressed with a fork, the fish should easily flake apart. Avoid overcooking, as it can dry out the salmon. Cook with the skin side down for best results.

Why cook salmon to 145? ›

145°F is the temperature recommended by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), which sets the food safety regulations in the States. The USDA arrived at this number because the main microorganism, Listeria, that causes food borne illness in seafood and fish is killed more or less instantly at 145°F.

What is the best sous vide temp for salmon? ›

Salmon Sous Vide Temp
Slightly Firm105° F
Buttery and Soft110° F
Slighty Flaky115° F
Tender and Flaky120° F
Well Done130° F
Feb 22, 2023

Can you sous vide salmon too long? ›

Salmon can be left in the sous vide bath for up to 30 minutes after the end of cooking without significant change in flavor or texture (after 30 minutes it starts to get a little mushy).

Is it OK if salmon is a little undercooked? ›

Eating raw or undercooked salmon can put you at risk of contracting foodborne illnesses, such as salmonellosis, norovirus, and Vibrio infections. Salmonella is a type of bacteria that can be found in raw or undercooked salmon, and it can cause symptoms such as diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps.

What is the perfect temperature for salmon? ›

The reason a lot of people don't like salmon because its dry, when in reality they just overcooked it. According to the USDA recommends the salmon temperature to be 145°F. When salmon is cooked at the right temperature it'll be moist, buttery and will flake the moment your fork touches it.

Is it better to overcook or undercook salmon? ›

Don't Over Cook It

Perfectly prepared fish is moist, flavorful, and succulent. When fish is overcooked, it dries out and loses flavor. To cook fish perfectly, remove it from the heat source before it appears fully cooked, while there is still some translucency in the middle.

What is the best temperature to sous vide fish? ›

A word from the wise: the experts at Cuisine Solutions recommend never setting a temperature below 130℉ (54℃) for food safety reasons. For well-done fish, cook at 143℉; for medium, set your circulator between 140℉ and 142℉; and for rare fish set the temperature between 135℉ and 139℉.

Can I eat salmon at 140 degrees? ›

That's because foodborne illnesses are much more likely to be passed on through salmon that has not been cooked thoroughly to a recommended internal temperature of 145 degrees F. Bacteria that cause foodborne illness tend to thrive in undercooked temperatures: between 40 degrees F to 140 degrees F.

What is the minimum safe sous vide temperature? ›

The US FDA model Food Code specifies that cooking vegetables to ≥ 135°F, intact meat to ≥ 145°F, ground meats to ≥ 155°F and poultry to ≥ 165°F is considered “fully cooked” and safe. Therefore any sous vide process that achieves those food temperatures is safe.

Is salmon done at 145 or 165? ›

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) states that salmon (and all fish) should be cooked to an internal temp of 145 degrees.

Is salmon 125 or 145? ›

While the FDA recommends cooking fish to 145°F, for a flakier, more moist and tender salmon filet, many chefs find that it's best enjoyed when cooked to medium – 125°F. Check out these key temperatures for Smoked Salmon, or look at a great method for grilling salmon!

Is 135 OK for salmon? ›

Rare Salmon.

Less than 120 degrees F. Medium-Rare Salmon. 125 degrees F to 130 degrees F. Medium Salmon. 135 degrees F to 140 degrees F (the sweet spot!). Well-Done Salmon. 145 degrees F or more (please don't do this).

How long to cook salmon at 140? ›

Then bake at 450°F until the internal temperature of the salmon reaches 140°F* (or I like to cook mine until it reaches 135°F*), about 4-6 minutes per half inch of thickness. You can also test for doneness by inserting a fork or knife in the salmon and twisting it a bit; the fish should be opaque and flake easily.

Can you leave fish in sous vide too long? ›

While many will tell you that it's impossible to overcook with sous vide (and this isn't far from the truth), do bear in mind though that if you leave the food in the water bath for an extended period of time it won't 'overcook', but it could start to take on a mushy texture, so don't forget about it!

Can I cook salmon to 135? ›

Medium-Rare (Farmed): If you prefer medium-rare salmon and you're preparing farmed filets (which all Atlantic salmon sold in America is), cook until the middle is 125-135°F. Medium Rare (Wild): If you're cooking wild salmon, medium-rare is between 120-130°F.

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